IDEX will study how much interstellar dust is entering the inner Solar System, how big the particles are, and what they’re made of. In addition to interstellar dust, IDEX will also detect interplanetary dust particles (IDPs)—bits of rock and ice that come from comets and asteroids. Some of these particles may still contain unaltered material from before the Sun formed, while others might show signs of changes that happened within the Solar System. IDEX will help scientists understand whether dust from different comets and asteroids shares a common origin or comes from different sources.

By tracking how the dust arrives and comparing this to models of its travel through space, IDEX will also help scientists better understand the structure of the heliosphere and how it changes over time. In particular, it will test theories about how small interstellar dust particles are filtered out by the Sun’s magnetic field.

This talk will highlight IDEX’s scientific goals, explain how the instrument works, and share early results from its observations. IDEX promises to deepen our understanding of the space between the stars and how it connects to our own Solar System.